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July 24, 2018

Need to Know | July 24

Football can be a savage business – although that’s not the ‘S’ word most who have been bitten by the negative side of it would use – and it has led to the exit of a respected and valued member from the Winnipeg Blue Bombers clubhouse.

But Monday’s trade of Adarius Bowman to the Montreal Alouettes for a conditional draft pick in 2019 also highlighted both how cutthroat and unique the Canadian Football League can be for those living it.

Consider Kenbrell Thompkins as an example…

Thompkins – who has 33 National Football League games and 17 starts to his name over three years with the New England Patriots, Oakland Raiders and New York Jets – took all of the reps with the Bombers No. 1 offence in Bowman’s spot when the team returned to practice on Tuesday.

And the cutthroat, unique and ironic part to that? It was Bowman who gave Thompkins a lift to Investors Group Field the day he was traded and it was Bowman – among others – who was so quick to help the 29-year-old product of Miami make the transition to the three-down game.

“First of all, that’s a friend. You never want to see a friend leave,” said Thompkins of Bowman after practice Tuesday. “Adarius, he actually brought me to the facility that same day. It’s sad to actually see him go.

“As for me, I’m just trying to come out here and do what I’m asked to do. I don’t control the decisions, I don’t control anything like that. I’m just trying to come out here and make sure I’m sharp and doing everything my teammates ask me to do.”

There is undoubtedly a salary cap component to the trade of Bowman, but his numbers are also telling. He had nine receptions on 24 targets through six games and in three contests, did not catch a single pass.

That said, Bombers offensive coordinator Paul LaPolice noted Tuesday that Bowman wasn’t in on all their offensive packages – he was the receiver taken out when the club opted for maximum protection in front of the quarterback, for example – which meant he was getting approximately 15 snaps less per game than some of the other receivers.

“In our mind, Adarius came here to be one of the receivers to mix in with all of our guys, but so did Nic Demski… we had two free agents that came in,” said LaPolice. “And Andrew Harris is going to touch the ball as part of our offence; he led the CFL in catches last year.

“So, where he was at… we didn’t bring him here to be our No. 1 receiver, if that makes sense. I thought Adarius was doing well with what we were asking him to do, but then there are certain situations that you evaluate as your offence moves on; where you can change and adapt and move on from. I don’t want to say he wasn’t successful. He was doing what we were asking.”

Added LaPolice, in a sentiment that was universal in the Bombers offices: “He’s a good pro. I’m going to miss him. Loved him in the room and the guys loved him, but that’s part of the business.”

More on the Bowman trade and some of the news and notes on the Bombers first day back at work in this week’s installment of Need to Know


MORE ON BOWMAN…:

Neither head coach Mike O’Shea or LaPolice would confirm that Thompkins will start for Bowman, but he was getting all of the work on Tuesday.

“We’ll determine who is the guy after a couple of days,” said LaPolice. “Both (Corey) Washington and Thompkins have good speed and size. They’re bigger targets and have shown well in practice. (Ryan) Lankford has good speed and has played in a bunch of different spots for us the past two years. We’ve got good options.”

Added O’Shea:

“We’ve had good depth from training camp on. We’ve done a good job of bringing guys in and we’ve got some young guys that are practicing better and better and now it’s time to see what they can do in a game situation.”

AND FROM THE QB ON AB:

“I have nothing to do with any of those decisions. It’s definitely a sad thing, a bad part of this business. (He’s) a guy that I’ve known for eight years and one of my good friends and a guy that I love and would do anything for. That’s always the hardest thing. It is what it is. I hope he goes out and has a great rest of the year. I’ll definitely miss him on the field and on a personal level.

“That’s the way it is in this business sometimes. You move on and it doesn’t change the fact that I’ll always stay in touch with him and be friends for life.” – Bombers QB Matt Nichols.

RELENTLESS ACCOLADES:

The numbers keep piling up for Bombers RB Andrew Harris – as does the praise. Harris was named one of the CFL’s Top Performers for his work in last week’s win over Toronto – a two-TD effort that also saw him set a career-best with 161 yards rushing. Harris continues to lead the CFL in rushing with 610 yards and has seven TDs in six games.

“They’re everything,” said Harris of the Bombers O-line. “They do such a good job. As well as people think I’m playing right now, it’s on them absolutely. They’re the guys who pick me up when I’m down, open up holes for me, create those creases and are pushing guys off of me. They get just as fired up for a big run, a big play or if I help them out on a block.

“We’re definitely cohesive that way and there’s good chemistry. We lean on each other a lot. Those guys are absolute warriors.”

HONEST ANDREW:

He’s posted three consecutive 100-yard rushing games and leads the CFL in rushing and TDs. And here’s Harris when asked Tuesday if he is playing the best football of his career right now:

“Honestly, I look back at the tape and I missed a lot of plays out there and I could be better. Even today, not a great practice. I’m a perfectionist in that way where I want to have a perfect game and do all the right things in every situation. I definitely missed some things last week and missed some things today. I’ve got to figure that out and be better for my teammates.

NEW BLUE BLOOD:

The Bombers welcomed aboard two new faces on Tuesday, adding Canadian LB Frédéric Plesius to the active roster and import receiver Brisly Estime to the practice roster.

Plesius (6-1, 245, Laval) has spent five seasons in the CFL, playing in a combined 73 games for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Alouettes, making 90 total tackles, one sack and one interception.

Estime (5-9, 185, Syracuse) is the ACC record-holder with a career average of 18 yards per punt return. In 2017, Estime signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent and was briefly with the Bombers in camp before an injury cut short his opportunity.